OPEC Trims Demand Forecast, Sees Ample Supply Continuing

OPEC trimmed its forecast for world oil demand growth in 2013 due to a slowing global economy and said it expected a trend for ample supply to persist, reinforcing its message that producers are doing enough to tackle high prices.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a monthly report, trimmed its forecast for growth in world oil demand in 2013 by 30,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 780,000 bpd and said the risk remained skewed to the downside.

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In a review of the prospects for the world economy, OPEC said this year's oil demand forecast has frequently been reduced, while supply from producers outside the 12-member group has performed well.

"This trend is not expected to change in the coming year, with the market continuing to be characterized by high volumes of crude supply and increasing production capacity," said the report from OPEC's Vienna headquarters.

Top OPEC producer Saudi Arabia made similar remarks on Tuesday, saying it was satisfied that oil prices have fallen to a level that does not hamper global growth. Brent crude was trading at $114 a barrel on Wednesday.

OPEC's report is the first of this month's trio of major oil outlooks to emerge. The U.S. government's Energy Information Administration issues its report later on Wednesday, followed by the International Energy Agency on Friday.

The report also said that OPEC production fell by 265,000 bpd in September to 31.08 million bpd, according to secondary sources cited by the report, led by declines in Angola and Nigeria.

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A Reuters survey on September 28 said OPEC output in September fell to 31.09 million bpd.

Despite the drop, OPEC is still pumping more oil than the forecast demand for its crude worldwide - and more than the production ceiling of 30 million bpd which the group is supposed to stick to.

OPEC expects global demand for its crude to average 29.80 million bpd next year, up 250,000 bpd from last month because of lower supply expectations from some non-OPEC producers.